Yesterday (March 28, 2020) a sister in Mexico had an experience regarding Isaiah 32:9-20. I want to respond to this experience. First, our sister felt a terrible foreboding that something was about to happen. I have felt the same thing, a foreboding of a great change but I do not view this as a terrible thing for God’s people. So, I feel it necessary to try and explain as best I can Isaiah 32: 9-20. In this scripture reference there are two groups of people. The first group are those women or daughters that are not taking the threat of Babylon seriously or perhaps the threat of the Assyrians also.
“Rise up, ye women that are at ease; hear my voice, ye careless daughters; give ear unto my speech. Many days and years shall ye be troubled, ye careless women: for the vintage shall fail, the gathering shall not come.” Isa 32:9-10
Both of these threats Isaiah foretold. In this scripture we see that daughters are not taking this seriously. I believe by some studying that the daughters are the cities of Israel. Many of those people in Israel did not take it seriously and were killed or carried away in slavery. However, they assumed that they would be saved from this problem or that they were too great to be brought down. They were people who ignored the warning voice of the prophets.
There is a second body of people in this prophecy:
“And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance forever.” Isa 32:17 “Blessed are ye that sow beside all waters, that send forth thither the feet of the ox and the ass.” Isa 32:20
This second group of people is characterized by those who have peace, quietness and who sow seed by all waters. This concept was not new to Israel. The house of Israel was saved beside the waters of the Nile river in Egypt. That reminds me of the statement which I heard while in Egypt with many other members of the Church in the year 2008. The guide said Egypt is the Nile. If there is no Nile there is no Egypt.
Israel was told to submit to the Babylonian king and then God would take care of them. They were going to be carried to the “river”. The Babylonian river is the Euphrates. It is referred to as “the river” in the Old Testament. God was going to keep Israel, in this case the believers and righteous in Israel, were going to sow by the river in peace. They would later begin to return to Israel after 70 years. I believe that Isaiah 32:9-20 refers to this time when Israel would be carried away and later return. I am sure that it refers to their spiritual restoration also. This is then a positive thing for God’s Church and covenant people.
I believe that in our day we should first interpret things in a spiritual way. The great division between the nonbeliever and the believer should always be in our minds. One group does not take seriously the warnings of God. They are careless. God’s warning in Isaiah was for the careless Israelites. Today that could be us. We should take the warnings of the day seriously, especially God’s warnings to us. I interpret that to mean we should respect God because of the things that coming on the earth. Take heed, listen, respond to God through his only begotten Son Jesus Christ. We should seek His face during these days, weeks, months with careful consideration and respect to God’s world of creation. I am referring to the “Virus” and the changes that may come to the world because of this problem. There is a seemingly infinite world of micro biology and the world of stars and planets which also seems nearly infinite by all human standards. But to God it is understood and known. Both these parts of His creation are known to Him in their complexity of DNA and Black holes. Respect God’s world and be humble before Him.
How should we respond to this situation? We should get close to the “River of God”. All rivers are really a representation or symbols of the River of God that comes from His Throne. It is a pure River and on both sides of the river is the Tree of Life. We should sow seeds beside this river to supply nourishment for ourselves and for all of God’s people. There we will find peace.
We should return to the Heavenly Jerusalem and rebuild the walls and the spiritual temple of God. The Old Jerusalem was the symbol of God’s Kingdom. One of the interesting things about the various kingdoms that have arisen in the past is that they always existed as a much smaller kingdom first. They struggled and grew until they filled the land and sent their armies to other nations to increase their rein and power on the earth. This is how it is today. We are waiting for the return of our King. Today our King Jesus is at war with the powers of this world. He will return from the war totally victorious. In the meantime, we sleep with our swords on the wall protecting the builders, day and night as they place the living stones in God’s Kingdom and get ready for the King’s return from His victorious battles.
Brothers and sisters, you must know that He is winning and He will not lose. Perhaps in the battles some of us may fall but God says, Fear not, I am with You. The battle is the Lord’s and not the battle of the temporally strong but it belongs to those who are Spiritually strong in the Lord. We have peace and quietness in Him. We must sow beside the waters.
“A Psalm of David. The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.” Psa 23:1-6
May God bless you and keep you.
Alvin Moser
This is the experience of the wife of Ever Jemenez in Chunhuhub:
“Good evening, brothers I want to share this beautiful Testimony, in the early morning my wife felt the need to get up with the family at 5: 00 a.m., because someone told her she should pray.
Before she rose as she began her first sentence to our Heavenly father and then she opened her Bible in this reading of the Book of Isaiah. Isaiah 32:9-20
After her reading, we got up and we had a prayer circle.
These verses have me thinking as if something very bad is near, but only Dios (God) knows the answer, I have a foreboding, and maybe Dios wants to tell us something.
God bless all my brothers in Cristo.”
Alvin J. Moser is a member and Apostle in the Church of Christ, serving as a missionary throughout Latin America. Alvin resides with his family in Phoenix, Arizona.